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Colleges and universities in California will soon be able to apply to get designated as Asian American and Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander-serving institutions under AB 2374, which Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Tuesday. This comes about a year after the U.S. Department of Education ended several grant programs for federally designated minority-serving institutions.
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The new California designation will be awarded to public and private institutions that excel at providing academic resources to Asian American and Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander students. To prove this, applicant institutions will have to submit a certification of their commitment to these student groups, academic goals they plan to achieve, and a strategic plan charting their path forward.
The designation does not carry any attached funding, but it serves as a recognition for universities committed to serving student groups that face barriers to higher education. According to bill author Assemblymember Mike Fong, D-Alhambra, it will help students pick higher education institutions “where they know they will be welcomed and supported.”
“California’s higher education system is one of our greatest engines of opportunity — and that opportunity must reach every community,” Newsom said in a statement. “AB 2374 builds on our work to ensure Asian American and Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander students have the support, resources and opportunities they need to succeed.”
California’s public colleges and universities serve hundreds of thousands of AANHPI students. That includes more than 10% of the 2.2 million students enrolled at community colleges, 15% of the more than 470,000 students in the California State University system and more than 30% of the 300,000 students at the University of California.
While Asian American and Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander communities are regularly grouped together and considered uniformly successful, studies have found significant disparities in educational access and outcomes across subgroups over time. Heightened immigration enforcement, data privacy concerns and shifting policies at present can augment existing barriers to higher education and financial aid for these groups, according to researchers.
For years, the federal government has provided grants to minority-serving institutions to strengthen their academic quality, institutional stability and student support services. For example, the Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions Program provided grants to colleges and universities with at least 10% of undergraduate students from these groups. These grants could be used to expand the school’s capacity to serve Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander and low-income students.
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A year ago, the federal government announced it would end funding for several minority-serving institution grant programs because they “discriminate by conferring government benefits exclusively to institutions that meet racial or ethnic quotas.” This included grant programs for institutions that served Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, Asian American, Native American, Pacific Island and Hispanic students.
The approximately $350 million allocated to these initiatives in 2025 were “reprogrammed” into programs “that advance administration priorities,” the U.S. Department of Education said in a statement. Several California universities lost thousands of dollars in funding as a result of this change.
“At a time when Minority-Serving Institutions face growing uncertainty on the federal level, California is reaffirming our commitment to ensuring AANHPI students and the institutions that serve them have the recognition, resources, and support they need to succeed,” Fong said. He serves as the chair of the Assembly Higher Education Committee and the Asian American and Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus.
The new law takes effect Jan. 1. The chancellor of the California Community Colleges will develop the application process. A nine-member governing board with representatives from all segments of public higher education will decide whether to award the designation to applicants. Institutions will receive the designation for five years, after which they can apply for renewal.
Earlier, in 2022, the state passed legislation to provide $16 million in ongoing funding to the CSU and community colleges systems to establish an AANHPI student achievement program. Through that program, the systems have provided students with culturally responsive services, including mental health counseling and mentorship opportunities.
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This story was originally published September 30, 2026 at 3:30 PM.